Press Releases

WASHINGTON – Today, President Donald Trump signed the NIST Small Business Cybersecurity Act, legislation authored by U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and James Risch (R-Idaho). The bipartisan bill will provide a consistent set of resources for small businesses to best protect their digital assets from cybersecurity threats. Small businesses are a pillar of the American economy and make up more than half of all jobs in the United States. But these businesses have also become a...

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), a member of the Senate Banking Committee, called on Wells Fargo to provide more details about a mistake the bank made that caused hundreds of customers to lose their homes and suffer from the extensive consequences of foreclosure.   “It is hard to overstate the impact of a foreclosure on people’s lives. In addition to causing displacement and housing instability, foreclosures have a devastating ripple effect....

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) released the following statement after the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted to move ahead with a $100 million telehealth pilot program. The Connected Care Pilot Program would expand broadband access for veterans and patients in low-income communities to connect them to telehealth services.“I’ve seen firsthand how telemedicine can make it easier for patients to see their doctors, bring specialized care to more...

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) released the following statement on the Senate confirmation of Jill Otake to be a judge on the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawai‘i. Otake was confirmed unanimously.“Ms. Otake’s record shows that she has an impressive legal mind and a steadfast commitment to justice, so it’s no surprise that the Senate has confirmed her to serve as a district judge. This is how the process is supposed to...

WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Senate passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for fiscal year 2018, which includes two bills authored by U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i).  The Schatz provisions will open access to commissaries to military heroes – including recipients of the Purple Heart or Medal of Honor and disabled veterans and their caregivers – and protect military bases from flooding by making sure facility planners are aware of and consider...

WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed the NIST Small Business Cybersecurity Act, legislation introduced by U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and James Risch (R-Idaho). The bipartisan bill will provide a consistent set of resources for small businesses to best protect their digital assets from cybersecurity threats. Small businesses are a pillar of the American economy and make up more than half of all jobs in the United States. But these businesses have also...

WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Senate passed legislation authored by U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) that will help Hawai‘i Island assess the damage the ongoing Kilauea eruptions has done to farmers and ranchers.“This is about people’s livelihoods, and it’s about Hawai‘i Island’s agricultural history and way of life. My legislation will help us understand how the ongoing eruptions have hurt agriculture...

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) announced that the Kohala Center in Waimea, Hawai‘i will receive a total of $869,931 from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to improve land management and strengthen local businesses. “For nearly two decades, the Kohala Center has built coalitions and harnessed people and resources to restore the watersheds of Kohala, which play an...

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and a group of a dozen Democratic senators met with former U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul to reassure him of Congress’ opposition to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s request to question current and former U.S. officials, including Ambassador McFaul.“Today, I met with Ambassador Michael McFaul and told him that the Senate has his back. The Congress will not allow Americans who served our country to...

WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Senate passed legislation authored by U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) that will help Hawai‘i Island assess the damage the ongoing Kilauea eruptions has made to federal infrastructure, the visitor industry, and the Hawai‘i Island economy. “It’s crucial that we understand how our communities and our local economy are being affected by the Kilauea eruptions and earthquakes,” said Senator Schatz, a member of the Senate...

WASHINGTON – Today U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) called for Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross to come before Congress to clarify his comments on the proposal of a citizenship question for the upcoming 2020 Census. In testimony before Congress, Secretary Ross asserted that the citizenship question originated at the Department of Justice, but an NPR report and recently published e-mails raise new questions about the veracity of that claim. “In...

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) released the following statement after the U.S. Senate voted to pass a resolution affirming the Congress’ opposition to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s proposal to question current and former U.S. officials. The resolution was introduced by Senator Schatz, along with Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Senate Committee on Foreign Relations Ranking Member Robert Menendez (D-N.J.). It passed by a...

Washington, D.C.  – Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Senate Committee on Foreign Relations Ranking Member Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI) today announced and called for the immediate Senate-passage of a new resolution affirming the Congress’ opposition to making available former U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul and other current and former U.S. officials to questioning by the government of...

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and John Thune (R-S.D) introduced the Reliable Emergency Alert Distribution Improvement (READI) Act of 2018. The bipartisan legislation would ensure more people receive relevant emergency alerts on their mobile phones, televisions, and radios, explore new ways of alerting the public through online video and audio streaming services, track and study false alerts when they occur, and improve the way states plan for emergency...

WASHINGTON – Today U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) released the following statement on President Donald Trump’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki.“President Trump failed in his duty to support and defend the country today. The American intelligence community has proved without a doubt that Russia meddled in our elections and plans to do so again. And yet President Trump trusted President Putin’s word over the men and women serving our...

WASHINGTON – Yesterday, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued a new proposal on how to pay Medicare clinicians. This new proposed fee schedule would allow clinicians to be paid for telehealth services, implementing key provisions from U.S. Senator Brian Schatz’s (D-Hawai‘i) CONNECT for Health Act. “I’m pleased that Medicare is catching up to the future of health care by implementing the key telehealth provisions passed in last year’s budget...

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and John Boozman (R-Ark.) introduced the Purple Heart and Disabled Veterans Equal Access Act of 2018, legislation that would open access to commissaries, exchanges, and recreation facilities to new patrons, including Purple Heart recipients, Medal of Honor recipients, former prisoners of war, veterans with service-connected disabilities, and their designated caregivers.“If you have the Purple Heart, you should also have...

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) released the following statement on the Senate confirmation of former Hawai‘i Attorney General Mark Bennett to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Bennett was confirmed by a bipartisan vote of 72-27.“I am very pleased to see Mark Bennett confirmed with a decisive bipartisan vote in the Senate. This is the way the process is supposed to work. I’ve known Mark for many years, going back to when I...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) released the following statement on President Trump’s nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the United States Supreme Court. “Judge Brett Kavanaugh has a troubling record of undermining civil liberties, opposing environmental protection, favoring corporations over workers, and undermining reproductive rights. “It is disappointing that President Trump has again selected a nominee from a pre-determined list provided by a...

HONOLULU – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) today issued the following statement after Scott Pruitt resigned from his post as administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).   “Scott Pruitt was unusually greedy and shamelessly corrupt, but his worst transgression was that he systematically worked on behalf of polluters to poison our air and our water and make climate change worse. I hope that the next administrator will actually care about protecting the...